Are you a Mona, or a moaner?
March 10, 2010
I firmly believe that there is more – MUCH more – good in the world than there is evil. If we want to, we will find goodness and pleasantness all around us, wherever we go. And the bad that we discover will not affect us in any major way.
Yes, the world is not perfect, and we are frequently faced with unpleasant experiences. These may take the form of unfriendly people, bad service, etc. I believe that what happens to us is irrelevant, but how we respond to it is the matter which is important. I’m not implying that I don’t care if bad things happen to myself or other people, but I’m saying that bad things are going to happen. The trick is to handle them effectively.
Social Media has given everyone a voice, a loud hailer if you will. This is powerful, because it has changed communication and marketing – and business as a whole – from what we once knew. People are talking all the time, about everything. Twitter is active 24/7 – literally – so is Facebook. People are talking about everything.
What are you talking about? Are you adding value, providing good information, sharing valuable insights? Or are you whining about every bad thing?
This is really an important choice to make prior to – and during – Social Media engagement. So many people are creating value and being positive “online citizens” – we value them. Others complain all day. For example, there is someone that complains about Social Media all the time – saying that it doesn’t work and that it’s useless. But where does he complain? On Twitter. The hub of Social Media. It doesn’t make sense.
In both the online world and the offline world there are positive people, and negative people. Monas, and moaners. The thing is, in the online world everything is amplified, made larger, expanded, extended. So if you’re a positive person – many more people will know about your positivity due to the vastness of the Internet, and the rapidness of information flow. If you’re a negative person, more people will know too. And you’re doomed. No one wants to work – or associate – with negative people.
So you choose. But choose wisely.
Photo credit: click here
Pick up a jersey
March 10, 2010
If you know me personally you’ll know that I’m not that much into sports. I played soccer in my pre-teen years, but not much thereafter. I enjoy watching a good game of soccer, tennis, and other sports – but that’s only if I happen to come across it playing on tv. I don’t really schedule this into my calendar, if you catch my drift.
What I do prefer is activities that get adrenalin pumping. So I’ve done bridge jumping, recently been on a (mega fast) speed boat, and sky diving and other items are next on the agenda!
Team sports interest me though, because I am fascinated by the team dynamic. Every person is important in the team, and working together is essential for success. I believe the same is true for business, as well as social communities. In this regard, John Wooden comes to mind. I first heard about him on a talk by Anthony Robbins, and then I saw this video of him at TED.com. Wooden (now 99 years old) was a phenomenal basketball coach. He was the first person ever (and then followed by Lenny Wilkens and Bill Sharman) to be a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame as both a player (1961) and as a coach (1973). As a coach, he is still unmatched for winning 10 NCAA National Championships in a 12 year period while at UCLA. The significant difference about Wooden is that he focused on “coaching for people, not points” – so it didn’t matter if the team won or lost – he was interested in whether the individual player won or lost. Did that player play his best game, even if the team lost? Did that player play his worst game, even if the team won? What an interesting perspective!
A few months ago I attended a soccer match with my cousins and their kids. We watched a bunch of kids – around 10-12 years old – enjoy their Saturday afternoon in the best manner they knew how. Someone (I think it was a parent) yelled to one of the kids “Pick up a jersey.” Perhaps I had heard the phrase before, but that was the first time I had actually taken serious note. Immediately, I made a note on my iPhone, under “Blog Post Ideas” – yeah, I’m that type of geek!
The little kid was told to “target” a player of the opposing team, to focus only on that player. The opposite of this would be to tell the kid “Target everyone” – forcing him to run all across the field like a maniac. This is not the way team sports are played. I think businesses should learn from this. Too often we try to “Target everyone” instead of using the “Pick up a jersey” strategy. We’ve all fallen into this trap – at some time or another.
When trying to win clients, we sometimes “adapt” just so that we can get the business. This – in the long term – is not good. We lose focus, and we spend time building experience in areas which are not part of our purpose and ultimate vision. Anthony Robbins refers to this as trying to speak to all the trees in the forest – instead of the biggest trees, and the trees that are the best fit for us.
A very bold woman, and a very dear friend of mine, Jo Duxbury, has conquered this. Jo runs Freelancentral as well as Peppermint Source (please check out these websites, Jo really rocks!). A few days ago Jo said this on Twitter: “Turning away work because the clients do not fit my target profile is a uncomfortable, but sticking to my guns is best for both me and them.” You can view the original tweet here.
This idea is so essential as business advances and as global markets open up. All of us can’t be everything to everybody, we really need to focus. We need to find what it is that we do best, and then just do that!
Photo credit: bethcanphoto
Exploring rejection
March 9, 2010
A few days ago a company rejected one of our proposals. It was quite a decent-sized project which we pitched for, and the rejection certainly came as a disappointment. In the past, a situation like this would be met with assumptions of why we did not get the work, and then we’d just go on with business as usual.
I had 2 assumptions about why we did not get this particular project. The first was price, and the second was that I thought the client didn’t see the value that we would add to their business. So I enquired, politely, as to why we didn’t get the work. To my surprise, the company presented 2 reasons for the rejection, and neither was related to price or value. In fact, they thought the price was right, and identified the value – but they had 2 other concerns. This was totally enlightening. Now there is an opportunity for dialogue! The first of their concerns is valid, but we might be able to convince them that it should not really be a concern (due to the nature of the Web and Social Media), and their other concern – we think – is invalid and we can probably come to an agreement on this one.
How many times – in business and outside of it – do we accept rejection and not explore the reasons behind it. I think that most times we will be amazed that our initial assumptions about being turned down are far from the truth. Sometimes we’re so afraid of the truth, that we fail to see the potential benefits which lie in the truth.
Communication is so easy today, and all we really have to do is talk! I believe that talking is the essence of relationships, and relationships are the core of business today.
Gina Smith wrote a very interesting article about communicating and connecting. Read it here. Thanks to Sheraan Amod for the link.
Photo credit: quinnanya
Coaching vs Training vs Consulting
March 9, 2010
The Internet has brought vast amounts of information to our fingertips. With all this information, and the rapid advancement in many industries (especially those which are Internet-related), there is often room for confusion, and ambiguity. For example, Gary Vaynerchuk (one of the people who really get Social Media) believes that Web 2.0 equals Social Media. He believes they’re synonymous terms. I don’t believe this. I believe that Web 2.0 is all of the Web – and that Social Media is but a component of that bigger whole. It’s a significant component, but a component – lesser than the whole – nonetheless. Similarly, there is disagreement about even what the term Web 2.0 really means, there is disagreement about the true meanings of terms like Social Media, Social Networking, and so on. Just this morning Adrienne Michetti said this on Twitter: “Hmmm. I don’t usually consider blogs to be social media. But perhaps they are. What do you think?” – a proof that these terms are still trying to be understood by all of us.
This confusion and continuous debate is to be understood. Just a few years ago we never knew these terms. These technologies never existed, and were beyond our imagination. Tweeting, blogging, etc are new words, describing new things we do daily.
What is very interesting though, is the confusion between terms we know for ages. I’d like to explore 3 terms which I think are widely misunderstood. Coaching, Training, and Consulting. If you go to the websites of some companies offering either of these services, what they actually do often does not accurately fit the term they’re using.
About 2 weeks ago I was sitting in the lobby of an office building waiting for someone with whom I had scheduled a meeting. I enjoy waiting. It gives my time to read, think, relax, or just observe my surroundings. On this particular day I picked up a business magazine from the coffee table and browsed through it. I came across an very interesting advertorial, which I think provided an excellent metaphor to describe the difference between these 3 terms.
A business coach is like the coach of an Olympic swimmer. This coach never gets in the water, this coach walks along the edge of the pool motivating and guiding the swimmer. Note here that the swimmer already knows how to swim, the coach is merely improving the skills and outputs of the swimmer.
A business trainer is like someone who teaches someone how to swim. The trainer can be in the water, or not. The point of departure here is that the person being trained or taught does not know how to swim, or does not know how to swim at the level that he or she would like. The trainer might teach new techniques and new ideas to swim better.
A business consultant is like a swimming mate – someone who is there in the water with the swimmer all the time, offering advice, being a partner in this swimming exercise. This is someone who does everything the swimmer does, tries new techniques, sometimes succeeding, sometimes failing, and then trying again.
This metaphor has even helped me grasp this more clearly. In my different business capacities I play all 3 roles, but I far much prefer being a trainer and a teacher. The joy of imparting knowledge to someone, and then seeing that person blossom in that knowledge – is priceless!
Photo credit: peasap
Google’s Buzzing, again
February 10, 2010
In case you missed Google’s Press Conference last night, Google launched a new social platform called Google Buzz. The Web has shifted to becoming extremely social and interactive in recent years, and this is going to continue without a doubt. Twitter and Facebook have been dominating the “conversations” on the Web, and now Google Buzz appears that it might change things – perhaps totally, but definitely in some or other way.
According to Google, Google Buzz is “a new way to start conversations about the things you find interesting and share updates, photos, videos and more. Buzz is built right into Gmail, so there’s nothing to set up — you’re automatically following the people you email and chat with the most.”
Before I continue, I want to say this: In my talks and writings over the past 2 years I have been emphasizing the importance of principles, not technical intricacies. The technologies are ever-changing – these websites that we know now were not around a few years ago, and they will be drastically improved and changed, or even replaced, in the coming years. My focus is on the underlying principles and fundamentals about why Web 2.0 and Social Media is so powerful. Once you have a grasp of them, the technology changes will not affect your ability to harness the full potentials of the online tools available.
Back to Google Buzz…
We’re not sure about the affect that this new platform will have on Twitter and Facebook. Firstly, it allows for status updates, commenting, liking, and also integrates with blogs, Flickr, and YouTube. It has a “Friendfeed” feeling to it as well. The only thing that stumps me at present is that it sits within Gmail, and on a “Google Profile” page. Personally, I use my Gmail account very rarely – my business emails are all in Google Apps accounts. Buzz will be integrated, but only in a few months time. There has been no talk of an API – but I don’t see Buzz surviving without it. Due to the API of the other social networks, I manage Twitter, Facebook, and even LinkedIn via TweetDeck. This simplifies my life a whole lot, and makes my social interaction much more valuable.
I agree with Augie Ray from Forrester Research:
“While bringing relevance filtering to the noisy social media world could prove a significant advantage, this doesn’t (yet) seem to be enough to pull people away from the networks they’ve already created elsewhere. Buzz doesn’t update user’s Twitter or Facebook feeds, so I expect experimentation but not wholesale switching in the foreseeable future. Buzz could end up supplementing rather than replacing users’ other social networks for now.”
What does get me excited about Buzz is the mobile access – available at buzz.google.com – and the extremely advanced integration with Google Maps.
Google says:
With Buzz for mobile, we hope you can start interesting conversations about places and be more spontaneous when you are out and about. How many times have you missed a fun event, even though it was nearby? Or a better choice of dessert, just because you didn’t know about it? How often have you wondered “Where are you?” when reading a text message from a friend? Now, you can use Buzz to learn that there is going to be a movie night at your favorite park, share with the world that there is an awesome ice cream place right around the corner, or tell your friends about that delicious homemade lasagna.
The Google Buzz for mobile video explains it all:
The mobile component of Google Buzz is believed to impact Foursquare, and I think that will prove true, at least to some extent.
Mashable’s article “Google Goes Social with Google Buzz” gives a very nice overview of Google Buzz – read it here.
Also, read these very useful Mashable articles (all posted only hours after the release of Google Buzz):
What Google Buzz Means for Mobile
The Location Implications of Google Buzz
target=”_blank”Google Buzz: What It Means for Twitter and Facebook
Google Buzz: Competitors and Experts React
Google Buzz: Will You Use It? [POLL]
I was surprised to receive access to Google Buzz immediately, I assumed US users would be linked up first. You can connect to me at http://www.google.com/profiles/jamaal786. I’ve been following the conversations on Twitter, and many folks can connect to Buzz via their mobiles, but not yet via their Gmail accounts on the Web.
Of course, if you want to avoid the Buzz altogether, this article might be of use to you: Banish Google Buzz Updates from Your Gmail Inbox.
At the time of writing this post, about 7 hours after the Google announcement, the topic is still very hot online, with blog posts being written, podcasts been produced, and thousands of tweets flooding Twitter. I’ve estimated about 2, 500 new tweets with the words “Google Buzz” every 3 minutes. You do the math.
Facebook’s Latest Redesign
February 7, 2010
Facebook has launched it’s latest redesign this weekend. The first deployment has been to 80 million users – just a fraction of it’s 400 million user-base.
Many people are complaining about login and news feed problems, and I expect that this will be the case for the next few days. Many users like the new design though, and I assume there’ll be less of an outcry about this UI upgrade.
Peter Deng presented the new changes in a private press meeting. Thanks to Mashable for making this video available:
Social Media ROI
February 7, 2010
The traditional business mind has been trained to ascertain what the ROI (the Return On Investment) is before seriously considering any injection of time or finances.
Social Media, being new and a current hype, is commonly the target of the “What’s the ROI?” question. Actually, I don’t believe it’s all hype. I believe Social Media is truly valuable. Yes, there is a lot of “noise” in these spaces, which I know will emerge into clearer patterns of communication, but even this “noise” is important, because it’s shaping Social Media.
A few months ago Scott Stratten (@unmarketing on Twitter) shared something with us. A friend asked him what the ROI was on Twitter. In answering, Scott asked his friend, “What is the ROI on our friendship?” This story is profound, and I’ve related it thus far in 2 public seminars. It’s profound because the ROI of Twitter, and Social Media as a whole, is intangible – just as in relationships.
Is it all about business? Is it all about numbers? Or is it all about people?
I highly recommend this book: “It’s not about the coffee” by Howard Behar. Visit the official website here. Howard is a Former President of Starbucks International. When we think Starbucks, we think coffee, right? Well, Howard goes at length in this book to illustrate that it’s really about the people, not the coffee.
He says:
At Starbucks, the coffee has to be excellent, from the sourcing and growing to the roasting and brewing. The vision has to be inspiring and meaningful. Our finances have to be in order. But without people, we have nothing. With people, we have something even bigger than coffee.”
“Opportunities lie within people” – something I learnt from Mignon Lotz-Keyzer, the owner of a company called PEERPOWER. I sat in her coaching sessions as part of a business programme in 2007. Mignon is a people’s person, and she did an excellent job in helping us understand the value of the human factor. We also covered Covey’s 21-year old masterpiece, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, with her.
Yesterday I came across an interesting article titled There Is No ROI From Social Media! I’d like to share with you the video at the bottom of the article, which sums up the Social Media ROI question quite nicely:
Photo credit: intersectionconsulting
Facebook gets into email?
February 7, 2010
Rumour has it that Facebook is developing it’s very own Web-based email system. The system is dubbed “Project Titan” and if successful, will prove to be a rival for Google and Yahoo. Facebook us currently celebrating it’s 6th birthday, and has recently passed the 400 million user mark.
This new development is said to be an enhancement to Facebook’s current messaging system, which it has – to the joy of many – been steadily improved over the past few years.
Do we need another email address though? I’m not sure about you, but I have about 5 already. I have also become quite used to the current messaging system – which is confined to Facebook users, and offers quite a convenient option for communication. Folders would be a good addition though.
The Los Angeles Times says:
With Facebook gravitating to the center of the online world for hundreds of millions, it is well positioned for such a move. Facebook users already stay in touch and share links and photos with friends on the social networking site, making it a logical place to e-mail and chat. Time spent on Facebook soared to 27.6 billion minutes in December, up from 17.8 billion minutes in October, according to data from ComScore.
Facebook is all about communication, whereas Yahoo aggregates content and Google focuses on search. Yet both Internet giants have legions of faithful e-mail users and deep stakes in the messaging market. The proof for Facebook will be in the execution.
So it would make sense that Facebook tap the creator of the popular Gmail to lead its effort that TechCrunch reports has been dubbed internally “Project Titan” and that some employees have unofficially dubbed “Gmail killer.”
Facebook’s Paul Buchheit, a former Google engineer, denies working on an email product.
Should Facebook really be delving into these waters? Or should they be focused on improving their social networking platform?
Photo credit: biscotte
What is a Webinar?
November 10, 2009
We use an online tool called Dimdim, and it’s completely online. You do not need a telephone. All you need is a computer with an online connection. Our upcoming webinars are of the presentation-type – so you don’t even need a webcam or headset. I will be presenting, you will be able to see me, and you will also be able to see slides on your screen, and you’ll be able to hear me of course. You will be able to participate by text, if you have any questions. Our next round of webinars will be of the collaboration-type, that’ll happen early 2010.
We’re currently hosting a series of seminars and workshops, you can view the complete list here. The reason we’re doing webinars as well is that there are many people outside of Cape Town – and even outside of South Africa – who would like to attend our events. Cape Town people are always welcome though, of course!
If you have any questions, please complete our contact form. And if you haven’t signed up yet, these are the upcoming webinars (and they’re absolutely free):
Understanding Web 2.0 and Social Media (Mon, 16 Nov 2009)
Making sense of Twitter (Tues, 17 Nov 2009)
How to find a job (or freelance work) using Social Media (Wed, 18 Nov 2009)
The Long Tail
November 7, 2009
There has always been people on the Long Tail. This is nothing new. Being there was the end of it though. There was nothing else. Now, with the advent of Web 2.0, people on the Long Tail now have a voice, they now have access to markets and industries which they could only dream of previously.
Jayz Internet Solutions is on the Long Tail. And so are you, most likely. And the world has changed for us. It’s a completely new landscape.
Please view this video of a talk I presented in Johannesburg in 2008. This snippet covers the Long Tail.
For more information on the Long Tail, this link is also useful.
